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to the Palatines, who indeed were accustomed always to perform their service in connection with the treasuries and the so-called *privata* and the *patrimonium*, and, to speak summarily, in all the established offices in Byzantium and 22.13 in the other cities. For from the time this tyrant administered affairs, in each office the revenues belonging to the subordinates were appropriated with no thought, partly by him himself and partly by the one holding the office, and those serving under their command, being reduced to the utmost poverty, were forced to serve all this time in a most servile manner. 22.14 And when a great quantity of grain had been brought to Byzantium, most of it was already rotting, and he imposed this on the eastern cities, a portion to each, although it was not fit for human consumption; and he imposed it, not at the price at which the best grain was usually sold, but at a much higher one, and it was necessary for the buyers, after paying great sums at most oppressive prices, then to throw the grain into the sea or into 22.15 some sewer. And since a great amount of unadulterated and not yet rotten grain was also stored there, he decided to sell this too to most of the cities that were 22.16 short of grain. For in this way he made double the money which the state had previously reckoned to the taxpayers for this grain. 22.17 But since in the following year the crop yield was no longer similarly abundant, the grain fleet arrived in Byzantium more deficiently than was needed, and Peter, being at a loss with the present situation, demanded that a great amount of grain be purchased from the lands in both Bithynia and Phrygia and Thrace. 22.18 And it was necessary for those dwelling there to carry their cargoes to the sea with great labour, and to convey them to Byzantium with danger, and to receive small payments from him, for the sake of appearances, while their loss amounted to such a sum that they were content if anyone allowed them both to give the grain for free to the public treasury and to pay another price on top 22.19 of it. This is the burden which they have been accustomed to call the *synone*. But since not even so was there enough grain in Byzantium for the need, many slandered the 22.20 matter to the emperor. And at the same time also the soldiers, almost all of them, since they had not received their accustomed pay, were seized with uproar and much 22.21 confusion throughout the city. The emperor, then, now seemed to be angry with him and wanted to remove him from his office, both because of these things which have been said and because he had heard that a demonically large amount of money had been hidden away by him, 22.22 which he happened to have plundered from the public treasury. And it was so. But Theodora did not permit her husband. For she was excessively fond of Barsymes, as it seems to me, both on account of his wickedness and of his exceptional ruinousness to his 22.23 subjects. For she herself was most cruel and simply full of inhumanity, and she expected those who served her to have characters as suitable as possible to her own. 22.24 And they say that she, having been bewitched by Peter, 22.25 was unwillingly favourable to him. For this Barsymes was excessively zealous about sorcerers and demonic things, and he admired the so-called Manichaeans and did not at all think it unworthy to be their public 22.26 champion. And yet the empress, upon hearing these things, did not abandon her goodwill towards the man, but rather because of these things she decided to protect and love him 22.27 even more. For she herself had consorted with magi and sorcerers from childhood, since her professions led her to this, and she lived believing in this 22.28 practice and always having her confidence in it. And it is said that she made Justinian tame not so much by flattering him as by the compulsion of 22.29 demons. For this man was not sensible or just or firm in goodness, so as to ever be superior to such a plot, but was openly a slave to a lust for slaughter and money, and yielded not unwillingly to those who deceived and 22.30 flattered him. And in the matters he had most set his heart on he would change his mind for no reason and had become most constantly like 22.31 dust.

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Παλατίνοις, οἳ δὴ ἀμφί τε τοὺς θησαυροὺς καὶ τὰ πριβᾶτα καλούμενα τό τε πατριμώνιον ἐπιτελεῖν ἀεὶ τὴν ὑπουργίαν εἰώθασιν, ἐν πάσαις τε συλλήβδην εἰπεῖν ταῖς ἐν Βυζαντίῳ καὶ 22.13 πόλεσι ταῖς ἄλλαις τεταγμέναις ἀρχαῖς. ἐξ οὗ γὰρ ὅδε ὁ τύραννος τὰ πράγματα διῳκήσατο, ἐν ἀρχῇ ἑκάστῃ τοὺς τοῖς ὑπηρετοῦσι προσήκοντας πόρους πὴ μὲν αὐτὸς, πὴ δὲ ὁ τὴν τιμὴν ἔχων προσεποιοῦντο ἐν οὐδενὶ λόγῳ, οἵ τε αὐτοῖς ἐπιτάττουσιν ὑπουργοῦντες πενόμενοι τὰ ἔσχατα πάντα τοῦτον τὸν χρόνον δουλοπρεπέστατα ὑπουργεῖν ἠναγκάζοντο. 22.14 Σίτου δὲ πολλοῦ κομιδῆ ἐς Βυζάντιον κεκομισμένου ἐσεσήπει μὲν ὁ πλεῖστος ἤδη, αὐτὸς δὲ τοῦτον πόλεσι ταῖς ἑῴαις ἐπέβαλλε κατὰ λόγον ἑκάστῃ, καίπερ οὐκ ἔχοντα ἐπιτηδείως ἐς βρῶσιν ἀνθρώπων, ἐπέβαλλέ τε, οὐχ ᾗπερ ἀποδίδοσθαι τὸν κάλλιστον σῖτον εἰώθει, ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλῷ ἀξιώτερον, ἦν τε τοῖς ὠνουμένοις ἐπάναγκες χρήματα μεγάλα προεμένοις ἐπὶ τιμήμασι φορτικωτάτοις, εἶτα τὸν σῖτον ἐς τὴν θάλασσαν ἢ ἔς 22.15 τινα ὑδροχόην ἀπορριπτεῖν. ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ σίτου ἀκραιφνοῦς τε καὶ οὔπω σεσηπότος μέγα τι πλῆθος ἐνταῦθα ἀπέκειτο, καὶ τοῦτο πλείστων τῶν πόλεων ταῖς σίτου 22.16 ὑποσπανιζούσαις ἀπεμπολεῖν ἔγνω. ταύτῃ γὰρ διπλάσια τὰ χρήματα ἐποίει ἅπερ τοῖς ὑποτελέσι τὸ δημόσιον ὑπὲρ τοῦδε τοῦ σίτου τὰ πρότερα ἐλελόγιστο. 22.17 ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ ἐς νέωτα οὐκέτι ὁμοίως ἡ τῶν καρπῶν φορὰ ἤκμαζεν, ἐνδεεστέρως μὲν ἢ κατὰ χρείαν ἐς Βυζάντιον ὁ σιταγωγὸς στόλος ἀφίκετο, Πέτρος δὲ τοῖς παροῦσι διαπορούμενος, ἐκ τῶν ἔν τε Βιθυνίᾳ καὶ Φρυγίᾳ καὶ Θρᾴκῃ χωρίων πρίασθαι μέγα τι χρῆμα σίτου 22.18 ἠξίου. ἦν τε ἀναγκαῖον τοῖς ταύτῃ οἰκοῦσι μέχρι μὲν ἐς τὴν θάλασσαν πόνῳ πολλῷ τὰ φορτία φέρειν, ἐς Βυζάντιον δὲ ξὺν κινδύνῳ αὐτὰ ἐσκομίζεσθαι καὶ βραχέα μὲν τιμήματα δῆθεν τῷ λόγῳ πρὸς αὐτοῦ φέρεσθαι, τὴν ζημίαν δὲ αὐτοῖς ἐς τοσόνδε μεγέθους καθίστασθαι ὥστε ἀγαπᾶν ἤν τις αὐτοὺς ἐῴη τόν τε σῖτον οἴκῳ δημοσίῳ χαρίζεσθαι καὶ τίμημα ἕτερον ὑπὲρ 22.19 αὐτοῦ κατατιθέναι. τοῦτό ἐστι τὸ ἄχθος ὅπερ καλεῖν συνωνὴν νενομίκασιν. ἐπεὶ δὲ οὐδ' ὣς σῖτος ἐν Βυζαντίῳ κατὰ τὴν χρείαν ἱκανὸς ἐγεγόνει, πολλοὶ τὸ 22.20 πρᾶγμα ἐς βασιλέα διέβαλλον. ἅμα δὲ καὶ οἱ στρατευόμενοι σχεδόν τι ἅπαντες ἅτε τὰς εἰωθυίας οὐ κεκομισμένοι ξυντάξεις, θορύβῳ τε ἀνὰ τὴν πόλιν καὶ 22.21 ταραχῇ πολλῇ εἴχοντο. βασιλεὺς μὲν οὖν ἤδη τε αὐτῷ χαλεπῶς ἔχειν ἔδοξε καὶ παραλύειν αὐτὸν τῆς ἀρχῆς ἤθελε διά τε ταῦτα ἅπερ ἐρρήθη καὶ ὅτι χρήματα δαιμονίως μεγάλα ἠκηκόει αὐτῷ ἀποκεκρύφθαι, 22.22 ἅπερ ἐκ τοῦ δημοσίου σεσυληκὼς ἔτυχε. καὶ ἦν δὲ οὕτως. Θεοδώρα δὲ τὸν ἄνδρα οὐκ εἴα. ἐκτόπως γὰρ τὸν Βαρσύμην ἠγάπα, ἐμοὶ μὲν δοκεῖ, τῆς τε πονηρίας ἕνεκα καὶ τοῦ τοῖς κατηκόοις διαφερόντως 22.23 λυμαίνεσθαι. αὐτή τε γὰρ ὠμοτάτη ἦν καὶ ἀπανθρωπίας ἀτεχνῶς ἔμπλεως καὶ τοὺς ὑπουργοῦντας ἠξίου τὰ ἐς τὸν τρόπον αὐτῇ ἐπιτηδείως ὡς μάλιστα ἔχειν. 22.24 φασὶ δὲ αὐτὴν καὶ καταμαγευθεῖσαν πρὸς τοῦ Πέτρου 22.25 ἀκούσιον αὐτῷ εὐνοϊκῶς ἔχειν. περί τε γὰρ τοὺς φαρμακέας καὶ τὰ δαιμόνια περιέργως ἐσπουδάκει ὁ Βαρσύμης οὗτος, καὶ τοὺς καλουμένους Μανιχαίους ἐτεθήπει τε καὶ αὐτῶν προστατεῖν ἐκ τοῦ ἐμφανοῦς 22.26 οὐδαμῆ ἀπηξίου. καίτοι καὶ ταῦτα ἡ βασιλὶς ἀκούσασα οὐ μεθῆκε τὴν ἐς τὸν ἄνθρωπον εὔνοιαν, ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον ἔτι διὰ ταῦτα περιστέλλειν τε καὶ ἀγαπᾶν 22.27 ἔγνω. μάγοις τε γὰρ καὶ φαρμακεῦσι καὶ αὐτὴ ὁμιλήσασα ἐκ παιδὸς ἅτε τῶν ἐπιτηδευμάτων αὐτὴν ἐς τοῦτο ἀγόντων διεβίω πιστεύουσά τε τῷ πράγματι 22.28 τούτῳ καὶ αὐτῷ τὸ θαρσεῖν ἐς ἀεὶ ἔχουσα. λέγεται δὲ καὶ τὸνἸουστινιανὸν οὐ τοσοῦτον θωπεύουσα χειροήθη ποιήσασθαι, ὅσον τῇ ἐκ τῶν δαιμονίων 22.29 ἀνάγκῃ. οὐ γάρ τις ἦν εὔφρων ἢ δίκαιος ὅδε ἀνὴρ ἢ ἐς τὸ ἀγαθὸν βέβαιος, ὥστε κρείσσων ποτὲ τῆς τοιαύτης ἐπιβουλῆς εἶναι, ἀλλὰ φόνων μὲν καὶ χρημάτων ἔρωτος διαφανῶς ἥσσων, τοῖς δὲ αὐτὸν ἐξαπα22.30 τῶσι καὶ κολακεύουσιν οὐ χαλεπῶς εἴκων. ἔν τε πράξεσι ταῖς μάλιστά οἱ ἐσπουδασμέναις μετεβάλλετό τε οὐδενὶ λόγῳ καὶ κονιορτῷ ἐνδελεχέστατα ἐμφερὴς 22.31 ἐγεγόνει.